People with ideas for projects to boost the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park as a place to live, work and visit could share in funding grants of £80,000.

Park bosses say a new grant scheme is a fantastic way to provide additional benefits for communities, businesses and residents across the area while also seeking to improve the natural, cultural and built heritage.

As 2018 is Scotland’s Year of Young People, £10,000 of the fund has been ring-fenced for projects that deliver a range of benefits for or work in partnership with young people aged between eight and 26.

Stuart Mearns, director of planning and rural development at Loch Lomond & the Trossachs National Park, said: “The grant scheme allows us to provide vital funding to help make a wide range of projects and initiatives across the park happen or take a step towards delivering a larger project ambition.”

“To celebrate The Year of Young People we are especially keen to hear about projects which create new opportunities for young people and provide opportunities for them to express themselves and to experience the national park.

“By supporting project ideas that will help deliver on our recently launched National Park Partnership Plan as well as community priorities identified in local Community Action Plans we are looking forward to helping a diverse range of ambitious project ideas that will make the National Park an even better place to live, work and visit.”

The grant scheme is open to a range of organisations including voluntary or community groups, schools and public funded bodies.

Interested applicants are asked to submit an expression of interest by midnight on Sunday June 3 before selected applicants are invited to submit a more detailed application.

Projects which received funding from the scheme last year include the planting of riparian trees along the River Balvaig near Balquhidder; the installation of a red squirrel viewing hide at Cormonachan Woodlands; the repair and restoration of lead framed windows of Younger Hall community building in Kilmun and design work in support of a community led project to redevelop vacant land at Blairmore.

Find out more at lochlomond-trossachs.org/grantscheme